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Sinking fund millage; Garden City
Topic Started: Sep 2 2009, 08:40 AM (266 Views)
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District seeks sinking fund tax approval
By Sue Mason • OBSERVER STAFF WRITER • August 27, 2009

Read Comments(17)
The Garden City Public Schools district is turning to residents to help make much-needed repairs to its school buildings.

The school board Monday night approved placing a request for a sinking fund millage on the November general election ballot. The request is for a half mill for two years and would cost the average taxpayer 9 cents a day or $34 a year.

“It's the shortest and lowest sinking fund millage in all of Wayne County,” said Scott Johnson, executive director of finance.

The request, if approved by voters, would raise some $340,000 a year which would be used for such things as roof repairs and replacing boilers with more energy efficient models.

According to board Vice President John Thackaberry, approval of the sinking fund would free up money in the general fund to invest in the educational program.

“The district is in dire financial straits and there are several areas in the physical plant that needs help,” he said. “This is something that would benefit the district and keep our schools and other buildings in better shape. We need the community's support.”

“It's important that the district maintains its schools,” added board President Patrick McNally. “We know we provide a quality education in the classroom and we need to show that in our school buildings. Our elementaries look good, but not all of our buildings show that.”

It has been eight years since the district asked voters to approve a bond issue that financed the rebuilding of its five elementaries and improvements at the high school and middle school. However, roof repairs need at the Cambridge Center which houses the district's alternative high school and older students in its autistic program. With a sinking fund, money is specifically earmarked for capital improvements. None of the money can be used for instruction or salaries.

“It needs to be used for buildings, there's very specific rules and regulations,” Superintendent Michelle Cline said.

Resident and district employee Cindy Driver told the board that consideration needs to given to some kind of hard surface to park buses on at the garage to increase their use beyond 10 years.

“There's a serious need for cement or tar there so our buses last 15 years,” she said.

She was assured by McNally and Cline that it is “already on the list.

Of the 34 school districts in Wayne County, 12 have sinking funds. Neighboring Wayne-Westland is in the middle of a 10-year 1-mill sinking fund levy, while the Livonia Public Schools has approved placing request on the ballot to renew the 1.12-mill sinking fund millage for five years.

“We're asking for less than everybody else, we're asking for enough to get by,” said McNally.

smason@hometownlife.com | (313) 222-6751




luau52 wrote:

Is this schoold board and superintendant living in some sort of dream land? How can they begin to think that people in Garden City would approve an extra tax when so many people are out of work and losing homes?? You have to beware of the school board .. So please do not vote to tax yourself anymore even if its as little an amount as the board tells you. Don't fall for it. At some point in the future they will come to you with their hand out again reaching for your pocketbook.
8/27/2009 9:36:19 AM

THX1182 wrote:

How about teachers and adminstrators sacrificing 34 bucks a day from their salaries since they love kids and their jobs so much?
8/27/2009 12:08:02 PM

luau52 wrote:

You cannot trust the people who run this district. A few years back when they got rid of the custodians some of them called the custodians extortionists just for trying to get money that was due to them.Now ththe board is asking some of these "extortionists" for money to help them out? I bet if you asked all of the custodials they got rid of which was all of them, they would tell them where they could put their request and the sun does not shine there at all. I totally agree with the reader that says teachers and administrators could give up a small sum like they are asking the taxpayers for
8/27/2009 8:50:34 PM

agardencityguy1 wrote:

Hey how about a car raffel to raise some money !

Gordan's is just down the road !
8/28/2009 9:41:54 AM

chuck852 wrote:

A few years back they said screw the custodians, now its payback time. Where do I get a Vote NO sign??
8/28/2009 10:50:42 AM

luau52 wrote:

This is from a 70 year old Garden City retiree.1. My stimulus money got taken away when Garden City raised property taxes. 2. Now I will be getting less SS because of rise in health care costs. 3.Potholes are not being fixed within the city. This led to a big car repair ill for me cause the shop said my car damage was from one of the many big potholes in the area. 4. Clunker program I could not use cause government said a 95 Tracer got 30 miles per gal. And now the board wants to stick their hands in my pockets again?? You cannot feel sorry for the board when they say what they're asking for is the lowest and shortest sink. fund in all Wayne County. We're asking for less than others and enough to get by. Cry me a river.Thackaberry wants the public support. If the group that was hired after the custodians were booted and locked out of their buildings was doing so good, why the need for money? Why didn't the board keep after Grand Rapids Bldg. services better? Too much work I guess.
8/28/2009 12:07:06 PM

myproblemis wrote:

Replying to THX1182:

How about teachers and adminstrators sacrificing 34 bucks a day from their salaries since they love kids and their jobs so much?

I know you'll probably quote some conspiracy theory, but the fact is that teachers have been working wih reduced medical benefits, frozen pay - including scheduled steps for newer teachers, higher prescription co-pays, and virtually no money for classroom necessities for a couple of years already. Visit the high school and look at the ceilings, the desks and mechanical equipmen. It's all worn out.
8/29/2009 10:12:04 PM

myproblemis wrote:

Replying to THX1182:

I'm sorry, but I have to ask - how much do you think teachers make where they could afford to give up $34 a day?
How about teachers and adminstrators sacrificing 34 bucks a day from their salaries since they love kids and their jobs so much?


8/29/2009 10:13:52 PM

nospinjustfacts wrote:

Why not offer classes for the high school students that wish to learn and start building a foundation for a career in the skilled trades. Teach them electrical and plumbing, heating and cooling, carpentry and other construction skills. Use the school buildings as one big classroom so students will have valuable hands on experience repairing and improving the school buildings on a regular schedule.
8/30/2009 4:05:14 AM


luau52 wrote:

Replying to myproblemis:

Replying to THX1182:

How about teachers and adminstrators sacrificing 34 bucks a day from their salaries since they love kids and their jobs so much?

I know you'll probably quote some conspiracy theory, but the fact is that teachers have been working wih reduced medical benefits, frozen pay - including scheduled steps for newer teachers, higher prescription co-pays, and virtually no money for classroom necessities for a couple of years already. Visit the high school and look at the ceilings, the desks and mechanical equipmen. It's all worn out.

I agree its hard for the teachers what with the reduced benefits and everything else but you have to remember that they work less time during the year than most of the public who work year round. To begin with teachers had better benefits than most Garden City residents. Bad building conditions are the fault of the incompetent school board.
8/30/2009 6:21:35 AM


bac1960 wrote:

i will vote no for this millage.use moneys u have.
bac1960
8/30/2009 11:26:22 AM

myproblemis wrote:

Replying to bolognasandwich:

Replying to myproblemis:

Replying to THX1182:

/>I agree its hard for the teachers what with the reduced benefits and everything else but you have to remember that they work less time during the year than most of the public who work year round. To begin with teachers had better benefits than most Garden City residents. Bad building conditions are the fault of the incompetent school board.

I mean no offense - but most Garden City residents don't hold advanced degrees, put in a year of student teaching, complete a three year probationary period, work 10-12 hour days, face evaluations at least annually, and complete ongoing coursework at their own expense for their entire career. I don't think that it is always fair to judge what a professional (not just teachers, but any skilled vocation) by how much the average citizen of GC earns.

8/30/2009 7:50:20 PM


luau52 wrote:

Replying to myproblemis:

>I mean no offense - but most Garden City residents don't hold advanced degrees, put in a year of student teaching, complete a three year probationary period, work 10-12 hour days, face evaluations at least annually, and complete ongoing coursework at their own expense for their entire career. I don't think that it is always fair to judge what a professional (not just teachers, but any skilled vocation) by how much the average citizen of GC earns.

"...professional earns..." Sorry for the typo.[/QUOTE]
Read your comments and can't really feel sorry for you for all the things you have to do to remain a teacher. If you are a Garden City School teacher you should remember back when the custodians got canned the teacher group did not really support them in their effort to keep their jobs which run year round not a shortened year like teachers have and please don't cry about what you had to do to remain a teacher And yes you do think you are better than the GC residents
8/31/2009 9:08:55 AM


Methodical1 wrote:

See what happens when Stapleton and the board doesn't know how to read a budget right. They let the bus driver issue go and they knew there wasn't enough money in the budget to cover it. Now we play a shell game--pass a millage so we can make up the difference they were short in the budget. Take the needed maintenance money out and you can pay for transportation again. I support our schools but they should have thought about fixing up the last 2 buildings when they passed that big millage a couple years ago. In this poor economy this isn't the right time to try and get blood from a turnip.
8/31/2009 12:42:00 PM

http://www.hometownlife.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090827/NEWS08/908270580
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